Examining WR Troy Franklin's Rise to Stardom at Oregon

The Ducks have been in desperate need of a star wide receiver for years and Franklin could be just that.

Author:
Eric Berniker
Updated:
Apr 4, 2023 8:55 PM EDT
Original:
Sep 28, 2022

In this story:

Oregon Ducks

Troy Franklin’s emergence as the primary receiver in Oregon's offense has been a long time coming.

The 6-foot-3, 178 pound receiver had a quiet but modest 18 catches for 209 yards and two touchdowns in his freshman season during the Mario Cristobal regime.

It's not a massive shock that he didn't put up crazy numbers as a freshman. After all he played in a run-heavy, predictable offense that often got him the ball on quick passes and screens, making it difficult to leave his mark. What's more, he entered a veteran receiver room that also featured Johnny Johnson III, Jaylon Redd, Devon Williams, and Mycah Pittman.

Now, all those players are gone and four weeks into his second season--it's Franklin's time to shine. A strong connection with quarterback Bo Nix and a newly revamped offensive scheme from Kenny Dillingham are two of the biggest reasons he's found success.

Franklin's main highlight of the season (so far) came in week 2 against the BYU Cougars. Early in the second quarter, the East Palo Alto native ran a post route that led him deep into BYU territory, Nix uncorked a 50-yard bomb, which Franklin snagged in SCtop10 fashion, rising up over the defender. The Autzen crowd erupted and Nix scored on the next play with a QB keeper.

How has Franklin evolved his game? Well, part of his growth came in the offseason, stacking days in the weight room.

“The thing that I’m more proud of with Troy is what he’s done to help grow his body,” Head Coach Dan Lanning said. “His body composition's changed, he's gotten bigger… I think that’s helped him be stronger and have better play strength.”

Franklin showed his strength again during the Ducks’ 44-41 comeback win at Washington State, regaining his balance after making a catch before cruising 25 yards untouched to score the go-ahead touchdown for the Ducks.

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“He puts his hand down and there's an opportunity for ball security to be poor,” Lanning said. “You watch him cross the end zone with the ball covered up in the other hand, that's something we take a lot of pride in coaching.”

While Franklin continues to assert himself as one of the best receivers in the Pac-12, Lanning, Dillingham, and Bo Nix have repeatedly said that this is just a glimpse of what he can do.

"I can't wait for him to start continuing to do that because we know the kind of skill's he's got," Nix said of Franklin after the BYU win. "People forget he's still just a true sophomore.”

Franklin’s success story is a mix of perseverance and opportunity.

Though he appeared in all 14 games a true freshman, he saw limited opportunities to showcase his ability. Then after the season there was a wholesale coaching turnover and he would have reacted in many different ways, however with the addition of Nix from the transfer portal and his reuniting with Kenny Dillingham, Franklin has now become a repeat beneficiary of a highly balanced and dangerous offensive scheme. An offense that allows him to find hole in zones and use his legs to gain extra yards, or battle defenders in single coverage one-on-one.

Franklin's breakout potential was obvious to Oregon's head coach months ago.

“Watching him in spring ball, I always say 'What you do on the practice field, it shows up in games,'" Lanning said. “Troy’s doing what he does in practice and it's showing up on game day.”

With Stanford coming to Eugene this weekend, Franklin has another opportunity to add to his already career year as Pac-12 play heats up. He'll go against a Cardinal secondary that features Kyu Blu Kelly, one of the best coverage defensive backs in the conference.

Oregon kicks off against Stanford at 8:10 p.m PT on Saturday at Autzen Stadium.